Creating an Information Security Program from Scratch


Book Description

This book is written for the first security hire in an organization, either an individual moving into this role from within the organization or hired into the role. More and more, organizations are realizing that information security requires a dedicated team with leadership distinct from information technology, and often the people who are placed into those positions have no idea where to start or how to prioritize. There are many issues competing for their attention, standards that say do this or do that, laws, regulations, customer demands, and no guidance on what is actually effective. This book offers guidance on approaches that work for how you prioritize and build a comprehensive information security program that protects your organization. While most books targeted at information security professionals explore specific subjects with deep expertise, this book explores the depth and breadth of the field. Instead of exploring a technology such as cloud security or a technique such as risk analysis, this book places those into the larger context of how to meet an organization's needs, how to prioritize, and what success looks like. Guides to the maturation of practice are offered, along with pointers for each topic on where to go for an in-depth exploration of each topic. Unlike more typical books on information security that advocate a single perspective, this book explores competing perspectives with an eye to providing the pros and cons of the different approaches and the implications of choices on implementation and on maturity, as often a choice on an approach needs to change as an organization grows and matures.




Building a Comprehensive IT Security Program


Book Description

This book explains the ongoing war between private business and cyber criminals, state-sponsored attackers, terrorists, and hacktivist groups. Further, it explores the risks posed by trusted employees that put critical information at risk through malice, negligence, or simply making a mistake. It clarifies the historical context of the current situation as it relates to cybersecurity, the challenges facing private business, and the fundamental changes organizations can make to better protect themselves. The problems we face are difficult, but they are not hopeless. Cybercrime continues to grow at an astounding rate. With constant coverage of cyber-attacks in the media, there is no shortage of awareness of increasing threats. Budgets have increased and executives are implementing stronger defenses. Nonetheless, breaches continue to increase in frequency and scope. Building a Comprehensive IT Security Program shares why organizations continue to fail to secure their critical information assets and explains the internal and external adversaries facing organizations today. This book supplies the necessary knowledge and skills to protect organizations better in the future by implementing a comprehensive approach to security. Jeremy Wittkop’s security expertise and critical experience provides insights into topics such as: Who is attempting to steal information and why? What are critical information assets? How are effective programs built? How is stolen information capitalized? How do we shift the paradigm to better protect our organizations? How we can make the cyber world safer for everyone to do business?




Building an Effective Security Program


Book Description

Building an Effective Security Program provides readers with a comprehensive approach to securing the IT systems in use at their organizations. This book provides information on how to structure and operate an effective cybersecurity program that includes people, processes, technologies, security awareness, and training. This program will establish and maintain effective security protections for the confidentiality, availability, and integrity of organization information. In this book, the authors take a pragmatic approach to building organization cyberdefenses that are effective while also remaining affordable. This book is intended for business leaders, IT professionals, cybersecurity personnel, educators, and students interested in deploying real-world cyberdefenses against today’s persistent and sometimes devastating cyberattacks. It includes detailed explanation of the following IT security topics: IT Security Mindset—Think like an IT security professional, and consider how your IT environment can be defended against potential cyberattacks. Risk Management—Identify the assets, vulnerabilities and threats that drive IT risk, along with the controls that can be used to mitigate such risk. Effective Cyberdefense—Consider the components of an effective organization cyberdefense to successfully protect computers, devices, networks, accounts, applications and data. Cyber Operations—Operate cyberdefense capabilities and controls so that assets are protected, and intruders can be detected and repelled before significant damage can be done. IT Security Awareness and Training—Promote effective cybersecurity practices at work, on travel, and at home, among your organization’s business leaders, IT professionals, and staff. Resilient IT Security—Implement, operate, monitor, assess, and improve your cybersecurity program on an ongoing basis to defend against the cyber threats of today and the future.




Building an Effective Cybersecurity Program, 2nd Edition


Book Description

BUILD YOUR CYBERSECURITY PROGRAM WITH THIS COMPLETELY UPDATED GUIDE Security practitioners now have a comprehensive blueprint to build their cybersecurity programs. Building an Effective Cybersecurity Program (2nd Edition) instructs security architects, security managers, and security engineers how to properly construct effective cybersecurity programs using contemporary architectures, frameworks, and models. This comprehensive book is the result of the author’s professional experience and involvement in designing and deploying hundreds of cybersecurity programs. The extensive content includes: Recommended design approaches, Program structure, Cybersecurity technologies, Governance Policies, Vulnerability, Threat and intelligence capabilities, Risk management, Defense-in-depth, DevSecOps, Service management, ...and much more! The book is presented as a practical roadmap detailing each step required for you to build your effective cybersecurity program. It also provides many design templates to assist in program builds and all chapters include self-study questions to gauge your progress. With this new 2nd edition of this handbook, you can move forward confidently, trusting that Schreider is recommending the best components of a cybersecurity program for you. In addition, the book provides hundreds of citations and references allow you to dig deeper as you explore specific topics relevant to your organization or your studies. Whether you are a new manager or current manager involved in your organization’s cybersecurity program, this book will answer many questions you have on what is involved in building a program. You will be able to get up to speed quickly on program development practices and have a roadmap to follow in building or improving your organization’s cybersecurity program. If you are new to cybersecurity in the short period of time it will take you to read this book, you can be the smartest person in the room grasping the complexities of your organization’s cybersecurity program. If you are a manager already involved in your organization’s cybersecurity program, you have much to gain from reading this book. This book will become your go to field manual guiding or affirming your program decisions.




Implementing Information Security in Healthcare


Book Description

Implementing Information Security in Healthcare: Building a Security Program offers a critical and comprehensive look at healthcare security concerns in an era of powerful computer technology, increased mobility, and complex regulations designed to protect personal information. Featuring perspectives from more than two dozen security experts, the book explores the tools and policies healthcare organizations need to build an effective and compliant security program. Topics include information security frameworks, risk analysis, senior management oversight and involvement, regulations, security policy development, access control, network security, encryption, mobile device management, disaster recovery, and more. Information security is a concept that has never been more important to healthcare as it is today. Special features include appendices outlining potential impacts of security objectives, technical security features by regulatory bodies (FISMA, HIPAA, PCI DSS and ISO 27000), common technical security features, and a sample risk rating chart.




Cybersecurity Program Development for Business


Book Description

"This is the book executives have been waiting for. It is clear: With deep expertise but in nontechnical language, it describes what cybersecurity risks are and the decisions executives need to make to address them. It is crisp: Quick and to the point, it doesn't waste words and won't waste your time. It is candid: There is no sure cybersecurity defense, and Chris Moschovitis doesn't pretend there is; instead, he tells you how to understand your company's risk and make smart business decisions about what you can mitigate and what you cannot. It is also, in all likelihood, the only book ever written (or ever to be written) about cybersecurity defense that is fun to read." —Thomas A. Stewart, Executive Director, National Center for the Middle Market and Co-Author of Woo, Wow, and Win: Service Design, Strategy, and the Art of Customer Delight Get answers to all your cybersecurity questions In 2016, we reached a tipping point—a moment where the global and local implications of cybersecurity became undeniable. Despite the seriousness of the topic, the term "cybersecurity" still exasperates many people. They feel terrorized and overwhelmed. The majority of business people have very little understanding of cybersecurity, how to manage it, and what's really at risk. This essential guide, with its dozens of examples and case studies, breaks down every element of the development and management of a cybersecurity program for the executive. From understanding the need, to core risk management principles, to threats, tools, roles and responsibilities, this book walks the reader through each step of developing and implementing a cybersecurity program. Read cover-to-cover, it’s a thorough overview, but it can also function as a useful reference book as individual questions and difficulties arise. Unlike other cybersecurity books, the text is not bogged down with industry jargon Speaks specifically to the executive who is not familiar with the development or implementation of cybersecurity programs Shows you how to make pragmatic, rational, and informed decisions for your organization Written by a top-flight technologist with decades of experience and a track record of success If you’re a business manager or executive who needs to make sense of cybersecurity, this book demystifies it for you.




Security Risk Management


Book Description

Security Risk Management is the definitive guide for building or running an information security risk management program. This book teaches practical techniques that will be used on a daily basis, while also explaining the fundamentals so students understand the rationale behind these practices. It explains how to perform risk assessments for new IT projects, how to efficiently manage daily risk activities, and how to qualify the current risk level for presentation to executive level management. While other books focus entirely on risk analysis methods, this is the first comprehensive text for managing security risks. This book will help you to break free from the so-called best practices argument by articulating risk exposures in business terms. It includes case studies to provide hands-on experience using risk assessment tools to calculate the costs and benefits of any security investment. It explores each phase of the risk management lifecycle, focusing on policies and assessment processes that should be used to properly assess and mitigate risk. It also presents a roadmap for designing and implementing a security risk management program. This book will be a valuable resource for CISOs, security managers, IT managers, security consultants, IT auditors, security analysts, and students enrolled in information security/assurance college programs. - Named a 2011 Best Governance and ISMS Book by InfoSec Reviews - Includes case studies to provide hands-on experience using risk assessment tools to calculate the costs and benefits of any security investment - Explores each phase of the risk management lifecycle, focusing on policies and assessment processes that should be used to properly assess and mitigate risk - Presents a roadmap for designing and implementing a security risk management program




Application Security Program Handbook


Book Description

Stop dangerous threats and secure your vulnerabilities without slowing down delivery. This practical book is a one-stop guide to implementing a robust application security program. In the Application Security Program Handbook you will learn: Why application security is so important to modern software Application security tools you can use throughout the development lifecycle Creating threat models Rating discovered risks Gap analysis on security tools Mitigating web application vulnerabilities Creating a DevSecOps pipeline Application security as a service model Reporting structures that highlight the value of application security Creating a software security ecosystem that benefits development Setting up your program for continuous improvement The Application Security Program Handbook teaches you to implement a robust program of security throughout your development process. It goes well beyond the basics, detailing flexible security fundamentals that can adapt and evolve to new and emerging threats. Its service-oriented approach is perfectly suited to the fast pace of modern development. Your team will quickly switch from viewing security as a chore to an essential part of their daily work. Follow the expert advice in this guide and you’ll reliably deliver software that is free from security defects and critical vulnerabilities. About the technology Application security is much more than a protective layer bolted onto your code. Real security requires coordinating practices, people, tools, technology, and processes throughout the life cycle of a software product. This book provides a reproducible, step-by-step road map to building a successful application security program. About the book The Application Security Program Handbook delivers effective guidance on establishing and maturing a comprehensive software security plan. In it, you’ll master techniques for assessing your current application security, determining whether vendor tools are delivering what you need, and modeling risks and threats. As you go, you’ll learn both how to secure a software application end to end and also how to build a rock-solid process to keep it safe. What's inside Application security tools for the whole development life cycle Finding and fixing web application vulnerabilities Creating a DevSecOps pipeline Setting up your security program for continuous improvement About the reader For software developers, architects, team leaders, and project managers. About the author Derek Fisher has been working in application security for over a decade, where he has seen numerous security successes and failures firsthand. Table of Contents PART 1 DEFINING APPLICATION SECURITY 1 Why do we need application security? 2 Defining the problem 3 Components of application security PART 2 DEVELOPING THE APPLICATION SECURITY PROGRAM 4 Releasing secure code 5 Security belongs to everyone 6 Application security as a service PART 3 DELIVER AND MEASURE 7 Building a roadmap 8 Measuring success 9 Continuously improving the program




Enterprise Cybersecurity


Book Description

Enterprise Cybersecurity empowers organizations of all sizes to defend themselves with next-generation cybersecurity programs against the escalating threat of modern targeted cyberattacks. This book presents a comprehensive framework for managing all aspects of an enterprise cybersecurity program. It enables an enterprise to architect, design, implement, and operate a coherent cybersecurity program that is seamlessly coordinated with policy, programmatics, IT life cycle, and assessment. Fail-safe cyberdefense is a pipe dream. Given sufficient time, an intelligent attacker can eventually defeat defensive measures protecting an enterprise’s computer systems and IT networks. To prevail, an enterprise cybersecurity program must manage risk by detecting attacks early enough and delaying them long enough that the defenders have time to respond effectively. Enterprise Cybersecurity shows players at all levels of responsibility how to unify their organization’s people, budgets, technologies, and processes into a cost-efficient cybersecurity program capable of countering advanced cyberattacks and containing damage in the event of a breach. The authors of Enterprise Cybersecurity explain at both strategic and tactical levels how to accomplish the mission of leading, designing, deploying, operating, managing, and supporting cybersecurity capabilities in an enterprise environment. The authors are recognized experts and thought leaders in this rapidly evolving field, drawing on decades of collective experience in cybersecurity and IT. In capacities ranging from executive strategist to systems architect to cybercombatant, Scott E. Donaldson, Stanley G. Siegel, Chris K. Williams, and Abdul Aslam have fought on the front lines of cybersecurity against advanced persistent threats to government, military, and business entities.




Complete Guide to Building an Information Security Program


Book Description

Many organizations today are required to have a formal IT Security Program in place in order to do business with their clients. An Information Security Program is not intended to be cumbersome or sit and collect dust on the shelf. With the proper planning and know how your information security program can drive business operations and ensure secure processes are followed along the way. Below is a list of just a few of the items you will learn while reading this book, which will assist you in developing your information security program. Building an Information Security Program; Establishing Organizational Security Policies; Implementing Organizational Security Policies; Delineating Employee's Security Responsibilities; Developing Organizational Security Procedures; Establishing IT Standards & Guidelines; Implementing Organizational Security Procedures; Maintaining Operational Security Programs